Mona Sax
Mona Sax is a fictional character in the Max Payne neo-noir franchise. She is a contract killer in a dangerous relationship with the titular protagonist, the vigilante cop Max Payne, and represents the femme fatale archetype. Mona appears in the first two video games in the series, Max Payne and Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne. She is the second player character in Max Payne 2 after Max, and her tragic love story with Max is the center of the game's storyline. She appears as a major character in the 2008 film Max Payne and makes a cameo appearance in the game's multiplayer mode of Max Payne 3. The games' version of the character was perceived positively by the gaming community and mass media, but Mila Kunis' portrayal in the movie received negative reviews. Contents hide 1 Appearances 1.1 In video games 1.2 Other appearances 2 Portrayal 3 Reception 3.1 Film version 4 References 5 External links Appearances In video games Mona Sax is a mysterious professional assassin, living in a derelict theme park somewhere within New York City. She is introduced in the first Max Payne game as the "evil twin" of her younger sister Lisa, the abused wife of the mafia boss Angelo Punchinello. By the end of the first game, Mona disappears inside an Aesir Corporation headquarters elevator after being shot in the head by mercenaries for refusing an order to kill Max issued by Nicole Horne, the CEO of Aesir and a renegade member of the powerful secret society called the Inner Circle. In Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne, more focus is given to Max and Mona's relationship, and she becomes one of the game's two protagonists.Christian Werner Thomsen, Angela Krewani, Hollywood: Recent Developments, Edition Axel Menges, 2005 (p. 142). Mona reappears as a suspect in the murder of the U.S. Senator Sebastian Gates. The case is assigned to Max Payne's new partner, detective Valerie Winterson, but despite their past, Max does not inform the authorities that he knows Mona nor does he inform them of her visit to his apartment. During the course of the game, it is revealed that Mona is indeed the killer of Senator Gates. To save her, Max is forced to shoot the corrupt Winterson before she can execute Mona. Mona and Max work together to prevent shadowy hitmen known as Cleaners from eliminating both of them. Eventually, it is revealed that Mona's employer was Alfred Woden, a U.S. senator and a member of the Inner Circle's faction warring with the faction of the Russian mob boss Vladimir Lem. In the end, she is shot in the back by Lem, whom Max kills. She dies in Max's arms as he kisses her, but lives on the game's hardest difficulty level, "Dead on Arrival".Steve Burns, 10 Things You Didn't Know About…Max Payne, 360, 28 April 2011. Mona does not appear in the gameplay of the first Max Payne game, but appears only in its cutscenes. She became playable in four chapters of the first sequel, Max Payne 2 ("Routing Her Synapses", "Out of the Window", "The Genius of the Hole" and "A Losing Game"). In it, Mona's moves are more acrobatic than Max's, and her sections involve several sniping sequences where Mona is using an exclusive Dragunov semi-automatic rifle, which provides a covering fire for Max. Her other weapon is a .50 caliber Desert Eagle, a handgun that she also uses in the first game. Mona was included also as a playable multiplayer character in the Classic Multiplayer Character Pack of Max Payne 3 Special Edition.Announcing the Max Payne 3 Special Edition, Rockstar Games, November 21 2011.The Max Payne 3 Classic Multiplayer Character Pack, Rockstar Games, May 9 2012. Other appearances as Mona in the film Max Payne]] Mona was portrayed by Mila Kunis in the movie version of Max Payne, whose role was described as "an assassin who teams up with the title character to avenge her sister's death."Kunis Cast in Max Payne | That '70s Show star to play vengeful assassin, IGN, March 10, 2008. In the film, she is a Russian mobster and Max is the main suspect in the death of her sister Natasha (an original character similar to the game's Lisa and portrayed by Olga Kurylenko). Eventually, Max and Mona join forces to uncover the vast conspiracy behind the Valkyr drug. The film credits end with a scene of Max meeting Mona at a bar. She also appears in the flashback sequences in the Marvel digital comic book Max Payne 3: After the Fall.Marvel Digital Comics at Marvel.com. Her clothes for the Xbox Live Avatar were released by Rockstar Games on the Xbox LIVE Marketplace.Avatar Marketplace at Xbox.com. Portrayal Wendy Hoopes voiced Mona in Max Payne 2 and Max Payne 3 Mona's visual actress in Max Payne 2 was Kathy Tong, a Hollywood model. According to the first two games' writer Sam Lake, he "did want to switch to Mona ... but it was problematic. In the end, Max frames those sequences with his narration, saying that he doesn’t know exactly what happened, or what Mona did, but it must have been something like this. In other words, when you are playing Mona, you are actually experiencing Max’s guess of the events". Regarding Mona's possible survival at the end of Max Payne 2, Rockstar's Dan Houser stated that Max Payne 3 would "not continue that aspect of the story. We toyed with figuring out some way, or doing something clever, and then decided 'No, no, just move on from that bit of the story.' It really didn't work because there was no way of knowing the choices someone made."Dan Houser On How Rockstar Does It, Gamasutra, November 18, 2011. Mila Kunis at the premiere of the film. In 2011, Complex ranked her role as sixth on the list of "hottest women in video game movies", but with a likeness factor of only 48%Peter Rubin, The 15 Hottest Women In Video Game Movies, Complex, February 16, 2011. As a self-described method actress, Kunis "took her job seriously" and "insisted on practicing a lot", but disliked Mona's outfit in the film, which was different than what the character wore in the games: "The clothes sucked. Oh my God, it was awful. Mark was like bundled up in jackets and wet suits and coats and turtlenecks and I was in a leather bustier and black pants and 5 inch heels."Mila Kunis is Mona Sax in Max Payne, CraveOnline, October 17, 2008. Reception The video game version of Mona Sax was critically acclaimed for being one of "relatively complex, non-stereotypical female game characters".Jon Cogburn, Mark Silcox, Philosophy Through Video Games, Taylor & Francis, 2009 (p. 66). She was included on the 2007 list of 50 greatest female characters in video game history by Tom's Games, where she was described as "a stone-cold killer who's incredibly tempting but not entirely trustworthy" and "the perfect female accomplice to Max Payne."The 50 Greatest Female Characters in Video Game History, Tom's Games, 2007-02-20 In 2008, PC Games Hardware also listed her as one of the most important female characters in video games.Thilo Bayer (Jan 01, 2008), PCGH history: The most important female characters in games, PC Games Hardware. In 2012, David Sanchez of GameZone proposed that Mona appear in her own spin-off game, calling her "one of the sexiest femme fatales in all of gaming", and added, "The fact of the matter is that Mona Sax is one hell of a character — one that hasn't starred in her very own game, but one that could very well do so and deliver an unforgettable experience." That same year, Austin Yorski of Blistered Thumbs listed Mona among his personal favorites while discussing the portrayals of video game female characters.Austin Yorski, The 6 Ways Women are Written in Video Games (For Better and Worse), Blistered Thumbs, August 7, 2012. In 2013, Complex ranked her as the 20th best supporting character in video games. Much of the positive reception came from the characters's perceived sex appeal. In 2004, TeamXbox ranked Mona as number ten on their list of top "Xbox Babes", calling her "no princess waiting to be saved" and stating that she had replaced their "bad girl" type "childhood crush on ''G.I. Joe''’s Baroness."Top Ten Xbox Babes, TeamXbox, June 30th, 2004. Polish edition of GameStar included her in their 2006 poll "Miss of the Video Game World", in which she was voted at 17th place.Michał "Songo" Berezowski, Dominik Błaszczykiewicz, Wybierzcie Wirtualną Miss Świata 2006!, GameStar, 14 September 2006. The sex scene between Max and Mona, described as "actually one of the most fitting ever seen in a video game", was ranked as the fifth top sexy moment in gaming by Games.net in 2007. MSN included her on their 2009 list of gaming's 12 "hottest babes" and wrote that "smart, sexy and dangerous" Mona was "remarkably presented in the game, being given the cold feel of a hired gun, with no regret or remorse".24 Mona was also included on the list of nine "sexiest babes" of action games by The Times of India, who commented that she "fits in perfectly in the dark world of Max Payne."10 The affair between Max and Mona was ranked as the tenth top video game romance by Joystick Division in 2011,25 and as the sixth most disastrous game romance by GamesRadar that same year.26 Mona has received some negative reception. In 2003, The Village Voice called her "a woman carrying more emotional baggage than Witherspoon's Elle Woods has pink Gucci suitcases" and stated, "And Max's love interest? A contract killer who survived being shot in the head, and who you also play: Mona Sax. Who wrote this crap, Ed Wood?"27 In 2006, GamesRadar ranked a cheat to undress Mona nude for her gameplay sections in Max Payne 2 as the fourth rudest cheat in video games.28 Film version Critical reception of the film character has been generally negative; forinstance, Richard Corliss of TIME wrote Mila Kunis was "not up to the task"29 and GameZone's David Sanchez opined that "Mila Kunis ain't got nothin' on Kathy Tong".David Sanchez, Hey Rockstar, make a Mona Sax game!, GameZone, July 29, 2012. In 2011, Complex ranked Kunis as the tenth most miscast action movie hero, because "her character, Mona Sax, is a heart-attack-serious Russian assassin, a description that brings to mind Amazon woman Brigitte Nielsen back in her Red Sonja days; Kunis, on the other hand, is petite and angelic-faced."Blown Saves: The 25 Most Miscast Action Heroes In Movies, Complex.com, February 10, 2011. Nevertheless, Kunis was nominated in the category "Choice Movie Actress: Action Adventure" at Teen Choice Awards 2009 for her portrayal of Mona in the film.Teen Choice Awards (2009), Internet Movie Database. She was also ranked as the eighth "hottest game girl" by GameFront in 2010 because the role, along with her enjoyment of World of Warcraft, earned her "some digital street cred".Phil Hornshaw, 14 Hottest Gamer Girls (LIST) , GameFront, September 10, 2010. References Jump up ^ Christian Werner Thomsen, Angela Krewani, Hollywood: Recent Developments, Edition Axel Menges, 2005 (p. 142). Jump up ^ Steve Burns, 10 Things You Didn't Know About…Max Payne, 360, 28 April 2011. Jump up ^ Announcing the Max Payne 3 Special Edition, Rockstar Games, November 21 2011. Jump up ^ The Max Payne 3 Classic Multiplayer Character Pack, Rockstar Games, May 9 2012. Jump up ^ "The Women of Video Game Movies: Mila Kunis in Max Payne". UGO.com. 2010-09-14. Retrieved 2011-10-07. Jump up ^ Kunis Cast in Max Payne | That '70s Show star to play vengeful assassin, IGN, March 10, 2008. Jump up ^ "Mona Sax of Max Payne Character Study at The Rush". UGO.com. 2010-01-12. Retrieved 2011-10-07. Jump up ^ Marvel Digital Comics at Marvel.com. Jump up ^ Avatar Marketplace at Xbox.com. ^ Jump up to: a b "Mona Sax, Max Payne". The Times of India. Retrieved 2011-10-07. Jump up ^ "The Making of Max Payne - Edge Magazine". Next-gen.biz. 2008-11-02. Retrieved 2011-10-07. Jump up ^ Dan Houser On How Rockstar Does It, Gamasutra, November 18, 2011. Jump up ^ Peter Rubin, The 15 Hottest Women In Video Game Movies, Complex, February 16, 2011. Jump up ^ Mila Kunis is Mona Sax in Max Payne, CraveOnline, October 17, 2008. Jump up ^ Jon Cogburn, Mark Silcox, Philosophy Through Video Games, Taylor & Francis, 2009 (p. 66). Jump up ^ The 50 Greatest Female Characters in Video Game History, Tom's Games, 2007-02-20link Jump up ^ Thilo Bayer (Jan 01, 2008), PCGH history: The most important female characters in games, PC Games Hardware. ^ Jump up to: a b David Sanchez, Hey Rockstar, make a Mona Sax game!, GameZone, July 29, 2012. Jump up ^ Austin Yorski, The 6 Ways Women are Written in Video Games (For Better and Worse), Blistered Thumbs, August 7, 2012. Jump up ^ "20. Mona Sax — The Best Supporting Characters in Video Games". Complex. 2013-09-09. Retrieved 2014-01-14. Jump up ^ Top Ten Xbox Babes, TeamXbox, June 30th, 2004. Jump up ^ Michał "Songo" Berezowski, Dominik Błaszczykiewicz, Wybierzcie Wirtualną Miss Świata 2006!, GameStar, 14 September 2006. (Polish) Jump up ^ GamePro Media. "Pants Optional: Top Sexy Gaming Moments| Net Tens". Games.net. Retrieved 2011-10-07. Jump up ^ Mona Sax - Gaming's Hottest Babes, MSN, September 7, 2009. Jump up ^ James Hawkins, The Top Ten Romances In Video Game History, Joystick Division, February 17, 2011. Jump up ^ Dave Meikleham, The Top 7… disastrous game romances, GamesRadar UK, 2011-02-18. Jump up ^ Nick Catucci, Looking down the barrel of a pun, Max meets Mona Sax, The Village Voice, December 23 2003. Jump up ^ Tyler Wilde, The top 7... rudest cheats, GamesRadar US, 2006-03-14. Jump up ^ Richard Corliss, Max Payne on Screen: Just a Tease, TIME, Oct. 17, 2008. Jump up ^ Blown Saves: The 25 Most Miscast Action Heroes In Movies, Complex.com, February 10, 2011. Jump up ^ Teen Choice Awards (2009), Internet Movie Database. Jump up ^ Phil Hornshaw, 14 Hottest Gamer Girls (LIST) , GameFront, September 10, 2010. External links *Mona Sax at Giant Bomb *Mona Sax at the Internet Movie Database Category:Action video game characters Category:Assassin characters in video games Category:Criminal characters in video games Category:Female characters in video games Category:Fictional American people of Russian descent in video games Category:Fictional characters from New York City Category:Fictional murderers Category:Henchman characters in video games Category:Max Payne Category:Mercenary characters in video games Category:Twin characters in video games Category:Video game characters in film Category:Video game characters introduced in 2001 Category:Video game sidekicks